Power Sector Reforms in India

WEC’s Energy for Mega Cities Study
Delhi case studyDemographics, Economics and City Shape Delhi is located in northern India between the latitudes of 28°-24’-17"and 28°-53’-00"North and longitudes of 76°-50’-24"and 77°-20’-37"East. Delhi shares its border with the States of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Delhi has an area of 1483 sq km, out of which urban area is 925 sq km. Its maximum length is 51.90 km and greatest width is 48.48 km. Mythologically, the city of Delhi belongs to the period of the Mahabharata 1 . It is said to be built on the site of the epic Indraprastha, where the legendary palace and court of the Pandavas 2 were located. Going by history alone, Delhi became historically important for the first time in the 11th century as a city of the Rajputs (A warrior clan from central India). Over the years Delhi became the site of seven cities 3 , most of them belonging to the more recent Muslim period of Indian history. Delhi was a small town in the beginning of twentieth century with a population of 0.4 million. Delhi’s population started increasing after it became the capital of British India in 1911. During the Partition of the country in 1947, a large number of people migrated from Pakistan and settled in Delhi. Migration into the city continued even after Partition. As per 2001 Census, NCT of Delhi (National Capital Territory of Delhi as it is known now for administrative records) had a total population of 13.8 million with 3.85% annual growth rate and 47.02% decennial growth rate during 1991-2001. Delhi's population in 2007-08 was 16.9 million. Delhi is highly urbanized with 93.18% of its population living in urban areas as against the national average of 27.81%. While it may not be possible to make an accurate forecast, the expectation is that the population of Delhi may range between 22 to 23 million in the year 2021. According to Census 2001, the density of...